Battle of Komaki-Nagakute

The Battle of Komaki-Nagakute, also simply called Nagakute, was a major battle of Hideyoshi Hashiba's unification efforts for Japan. He defeated the army of Ieyasu Tokugawa after a long standoff, and forced him to become a vassal of his.

Background
In 1583, Hideyoshi Hashiba claimed victory at Shizugatake and secured his position as successor to the Nobunaga legacy. Nobunaga's son Nobukatsu, however, sided with rival warlord Ieyasu Tokugawa. Together they posed a new threat to Hideyoshi's authority. With neither side willing to back down, war seemed inevitable. Leading massive armies, the two finally came face-to-face in battle.

Hideyoshi's army was in a standoff with the Tokugawa army. Neither side could afford to make a rash move, as the embankments ensured that any attack would be a risky one. Nevertheless, he had to find a way to break through the embankments, and push on to Mt. Komaki Castle. If he could trick the enemy into thinking they were after their main camp at Okazaki Castle, they would be forced to split their army in two. It would be Kiyomasa Kato's job to remove all enemy resistance and take down the garrisons. If he could claim the Tokugawa Eastern Garrison, then they would throw the Tokugawa into disarray. Once that was done, Mt. Komaki would be as good as theirs, and with it, victory.

Battle of Nagakute
Sakon Shima was dispatched to Nagakute garrison, while the Toyotomi set up their base right in front of Okazaki Castle. That would make the Tokugawa panic, and it would be time for a divide and conquer strategy. Kiyomasa Kato accompanied Sakon Shima to Nagakute Garrison, while Lady Nene temporarily left the battlefield to set her plan into motion. The Toyotomi Army moved to reduce the layers of Tokugawa troops, as the battle was set on the two embankments and two islands in between. Tsuneoki Ikeda defeated Ujishige Niwa while Kiyomasa also rounded up officer victories. Ujinaga Udono attempted to defend Nagakute garrison's southern gate, but his defenses were breached by Sakon and Kiyomasa, who secured the base and the strongholds. With Nagakute captured, Kiyomasa set out to cut a path to Mt. Komaki Castle by capturing the Western Stronghold and Eastern Stronghold. Ieyasu noticed that his base was in danger, so he reluctantly decided to move; dispersing his troops would also weaken his position. He moved towards Okazaki Castle, giving the Toyotomi the chance to attack.

Battle of Mt. Komaki
Mt. Komaki was undermanned, so the Toyotomi had the ability to take it. If the castle fell, the battle was as good as theirs. Rather than focusing on defeating Ieyasu, Hideyoshi focused on defeating Tadakatsu Honda. Nene appeared at the Tokugawa Eastern Garrison, launching a surprise attack that confused the Tokugawa Army. With the gates open, all that was left was to claim the garrison from Hanzo Hattori. The castle was secured, but Masanobu Honda, Shigetsugu Honda, Motonobu Okabe, and Nagamori Okabe charged out of the Okusa Gate from Okazaki Castle to attack Hideyoshi, as did the guards of the Eastern and Western garrisons. Lord Tadakatsu's daughter Ina and Yasunao Itami prepared to follow the advance, but within 3 minutes Kiyomasa Kato had routed their army. Although Sakon Shima was defeated by Nagamori Okabe, Hideyoshi prepared the push.

Tadanari Aoyama and many other Tokugawa officers were isolated outside of Okazaki, whose gates were shut, and Mt. Komaki, and the Toyotomi prepared a final push. Tsuneoki Ikeda, who was badly injured by Nagamori Okabe, died in battle. Mitsunari Ishida was also wounded in the fight. Nobumasa Okudaira defeated Ittetsu Inaba, but the Toyotomi Army defeated the last vestiges of the Tokugawa that were left on the field, and they assaulted Mt. Komaki Castle.

Nobukatsu Oda said that he would claim The Monkey's head (Hideyoshi was nicknamed "the monkey" by Nobunaga Oda) himself, and readied for battle when Kato Kiyomasa stormed the castle. Tadakatsu braced himself and Kiyomasa dueled the two, and Nobukatsu was left with little choice but to withdraw with his manpower whittled down. Tadakatsu was injured, and was also forced to retreat. With Ieyasu's army defeated, the Toyotomi won the battle.

Aftermath
The Toyotomi won the Battle of Komaki-Nagakute, although they had lost Tsunemasa Ikeda and general Nagayoshi Mori. However, they had defeated the Tokugawa and won the succession war. All that was left was to focus on the remaining powerful clans such as the Shimazu, Hojo, and Chosokabe. By 1590, Japan was in Hideyoshi's hands, and after his death in 1598, it would be Ieyasu who established the Tokugawa Shogunate.